Writing style
Conversational · Descriptive · Direct · Journalistic
Apple BooksThe Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
Biography and memoir
- First published
- 2010
- Print length
- 381 pagesBroadway Paperbacks, 2011
Description
Rebecca Skloot investigates the life of Henrietta Lacks and the astonishing afterlife of cells removed from her cervical cancer without her knowledge in 1951. Known as HeLa, the cell line became an essential tool in major medical advances and generated enormous scientific and commercial value. Lacks’s family, meanwhile, remained largely unknown and continued to face hardship even as parts of her body circulated through laboratories. Drawing on extensive research, family testimony, and material including daughter Deborah’s journal, Skloot connects scientific history to an intimate family story. The book examines how discovery, profit, race, and class shaped medical treatment, asking what ethical obligations arise when research transforms human tissue into a resource while leaving the person behind.
Reading profile
About this profile
Collected’s assessment, not reader ratings. Complexity runs from 1 (least demanding) to 5 (most demanding).
- Writing
- How much attention the sentences and language require.
- Ideas
- How much interpretation or abstract reasoning the book asks of you.
- Structure
- How much you need to keep track of speakers, timelines and connections.
- Background knowledge
- Prior knowledge needed to follow the book, beyond what it explains.
- Emotional intensity
- Emotional pressure, from gentle (1) to intense (5). Separate from difficulty.
Pace
Moderate
Tone
Cerebral · Earnest · Intimate · Reflective
Structure
Braided · Multiple timelines
Focus
Character · Ideas · Information
Emotional intensity
4 / 5
Reading complexity
1–5 · higher means more demanding- Writing
- 3 / 5
- Ideas
- 4 / 5
- Structure
- 4 / 5
- Background knowledge
- 2 / 5
Themes
Book details
For the print edition listed above.
- Publisher
- Broadway Paperbacks
- Language
- English
- ISBN
- 9781400052189
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